


Debriefed

by rocketscientist07



Series: Debriefed [1]
Category: Bloodbound (Visual Novel)
Genre: Eventual Romance, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-06
Updated: 2018-07-18
Packaged: 2019-05-19 02:54:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,752
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14865263
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rocketscientist07/pseuds/rocketscientist07
Summary: After losing a member of her clan, Kamilah Sayeed drives away from New York. One decision... one night... that would change her life forever.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Author's Note: This is the second fanfiction I post online and English is my second language, please forgive me for any mistakes.
> 
> Additional notes:  
> \- I'm using Amy for MC's name, as it's the game's default name.  
> \- Kamilah being over 2000 years old, I assume she has some knowledge on debriefing. This vampire skill hasn't been explored in the book yet, so I'm kinda basing it on Vampire Diaries' compelling skill.
> 
> Disclaimer: Bloodbound and all the characters belong to Pixelberry Studios

_~22 years ago~ - 1 a.m._

  
The night looked darker than usual, making it hard to see anything even for a vampire with an advanced sight. Kamilah Sayeed sighed in frustration.  
Such a stupid decision she made, to drive around the coast. Again. She had done that over 20 times since she arrived to America. But then, she was bored and there was the council... A bunch of snakes! A member of her clan was being accused of causing trouble. Although she had enough proof his acts were directly influenced by Priya Lacroix, they still voted in favor of his execution. Except for Adrian.  
Are you sure you're going to be okay? - Adrian asked before she left.  
She nodded, lying. Truth was, she was getting tired of this life. This world had nothing new to show her. As much as the World had changed since she was turned, everything was still the same. She felt like didn't belong anywhere. People never changed. Love was a myth, an illusion to make people believe they were destinated for someone. Happiness was just a temporary state of mind, not a feeling. There was no such a thing as fate. Or maybe her fate had been erased, by the time she became a vampire. An undead being.  
She turned on the radio to distract her mind. Stupid mortal love song. She changed the station. Static. Another station, more static and inaudible words, news about the mortal world. She rolled her eyes and turned off the radio. Silence felt better.  
 _"Help me!"_ She heard as soon as the radio stopped.  
She looked around, seeing nothing on both of the sides of the road.   
_"Please, I need help!"_ She heard again, distantly.  
Not being able to locate where the sound came from, she followed her way. A little further on the road, a strange smell started to fill the air. That was smoke and... blood. Her instincts never failed to show her a possible prey. Looking at her left, she was able to locate where it was coming from. A car had crashed into a tree, in the middle of the woods.  
Kamilah stopped her car, grabbed a flashlight and followed the smell.  
Help me! The voice cried again. Kamilah was able to distinguish it as a woman.  
She pondered if it was a good idea to proceed. The smoke was starting to fill her airways to the point she started coughing. That woman's days were numbered anyways. Sooner or later that she'd find her fate.  
 _"Please, help my baby!"_ The voice begged, in the middle of sobs.  
Kamilah wasn't sure if it was Adrian's influence, but she wasn't able to ignore that plead. He was poisoning her mind with his over affection for humans. A few more steps and she located the crash site. A lot of smoke and the smell of leaking gas suggested that the car was going to explode anytime soon.  
"Y-you," a young woman called from the driver's seat. "P-please."  
Kamilah approached, noticing she was very injured. Bleeding profusely.   
She took her hand to her nose and mouth. The blood was making her feel predatory, it had been a few hours since she last fed. As much as she was hungry, that wasn't the intention right now, she was determined to help the poor mortal.  
Kamilah tried to open the car's door, but the damage got it stuck. Using her extra strenght, she was able to remove it with much effort.  
"H-how..."   
"It doesn't matter." She told the female, while examining her injuries. The woman showed symptoms of internal hemorrage and head trauma.  
"I need you to stay calm," Kamilah ordered, trying to unplug the safety belt. "I'm gonna get you out here. This car is about to explode."  
"P-please... take... my daughter first."  
Kamilah looked at the back of the car. A little baby girl slept peacefully on the safety seat. She looked unharmed.   
"Okay," she agreed, moving her body to the back to get the child. While she figured out how to remove the seat, the infant woke up, crying very loudly.  
"M-my baby... is... she okay?" The mother asked.  
"She appears to be."  
Kamilah placed the baby on the ground, a couple of meters away from the crash scene, and came back to get the mother.  
"No... take her out of here first... then you come back..."  
"We're running out of time..."  
"Please!" The woman demanded, holding Kamilah's hand tightly. "I'm not sure... I'm going to..."  
Kamilah gave her a consenting look.  
"I'll be right back."  
Some things are only possible when you're a vampire, in a fraction of a second she took the baby to her own car. She placed her inside and locked the doors, where she'd be safe and warm. In another second she was back to rescue the mother.  
"H-how did...? Am I hallucinating?"  
Kamilah ignored her question and carefully removed her from the damaged car, as the flames started to erupt. Holding the female in her arms, she quickly got out of the woods. She placed the injured woman lying on the road.   
After a couple of minutes, the car exploded in flames. There was a lot of fire and smoke, it'd attract help in a matter of minutes, Kamilah observed.  
"T-thank you..." the woman said. "Now go... take my baby and..."  
"I'm not leaving you here!" Kamilah angered. "I'll stay until help comes."  
"I-I'm dying..."  
The young mother wasn't lying. She was pale and cold. Kamilah checked her pulse, she could barely feel it. She was about to fall unconscious when Kamilah touched her face.  
"Hey, stay with me!" She asked. "Stay awake! Tell me about your daughter!"  
"H-her name is Amy... S-she's only... three months old. "  
"Is she your only child?"  
"Yeah..." the woman was about to faint.  
"Tell me about your husband!" Kamilah shook her body, in an attempt to keep her conscious.  
"We had a fight and... I..." tears started coming down from her eyes. "I was driving to... my mother's...."  
She collapsed.  
"No. Stay with me, stay with me!"   
Kamilah had watched many people die, but this one was way too painful. The female seemed to be in her early twenties. She couldn't help thinking about her husband and her baby daughter. She made a decision that could be either that woman's salvation, or her final death sentence. Kamilah bite her own wrist to feed her some of her blood. If it didn't heal her injuries, she'd die to become a vampire. Or worse.  
"The council is going to have me executed too," Kamilah said to herself, while waiting for the injured woman to respond. After a few minutes, that seemed like hours, her pulsation was finally growing stronger and the color started to come back to her skin.  
Kamilah sighed in relief.  
When she noticed the mother was going to be alright, she went to her car to check the baby. Baby Amy hadn't stopped crying for a second. Kamilah carefully took her in her arms and sat down, to examine if she had any injuries.  
"You're a tough one," she told the baby. "How could escape this accident without a single scratch?"  
The baby stopped crying and started to look at her directly in the eyes, paying attention in every word she said.  
"You're so tiny, fragile, but enchanting. Like a..." Kamilah stopped to think, " _little firefly_."  
The baby giggled and grabbed her thumb.   
In that moment it was like time had stopped and everything else had disappeared around them. Kamilah felt like she had been teleported to another dimension. A surge of eletricity ran through all her body and for a second she felt like the sun was burning her skin.  
"What the..." she thought.   
Wasn't it what the book's legend said? A legend Adrian told her, long time ago, about when vampires find their _bound_. Their souls would always be linked to the bound's. And the bound was the only thing in the world that had the power of making them feel human... complete again...  
 _"So this is how it fells when you finally meet Ms. Right?"_ She laughed and mocked Adrian for being so hopeless romantic. Now she was experiencing exactly what he described.   
_Bounding_ was considered extremely rare. Some would consider it as a myth.  
"No," she shook her head in denial. "It can't be. It's not real."  
She got pulled back to reality, baby Amy was still looking at her, smiling.  
"Don't do this, Amy," she said with some sadness in her voice. "I mean it. I've done some horrible things in the past and... I can't make you happy! A life with me will only put you in constant danger until the day... the day someone will take you away from me."  
The mother started showing signs she was about to wake up. Kamilah moved to her side, pressing her fingers against her temples. Jameson had taught her some lessons about debriefing, however, she had never tried. Until now.  
"Forget about me. Forget I rescued you. You were in a car accident and escaped, unharmed. After bringing your baby to safety, you passed out. You remember nothing."  
Kamilah could hear the sirens approaching, so she placed baby Amy in her seat, right next to her mother, and drove away as fast as she could.  
For the next months or even years, Kamilah did the best to erase that event from her mind, by dedicating her time exclusively to her company, Ahmanet Financial, and avoiding much contact with mortals.  
Until... 12 years later...

 

**To be continued...**


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author’s Notes:
> 
> \- English is my second language, please forgive me for any mistakes.  
> \- I’ll edit this chapter in the future if anything major regarding Lysimachus is revealed in the next chapters of the book.  
> \- This chapter is about Kamilah experiencing the first effects from bounding. Next chapter will be more interesting, as Amy will be an adult.
> 
> Disclaimer: Bloodbound and all the characters belong to Pixelberry Studios

_~10 years ago~ - New Year's Eve - 10:30 p.m._  
  
_"You don't have to spend Holidays alone, locked in your office,"_ Adrian said. _"We could spend it together."_  
_"Oh, Adrian. You don't understand..."_ Kamilah thought, placing two glasses on her desk. She grabbed a bottle of vodka in one of her drawers and filled them.  
"One for me. One for you, brother."  
Holidays were a tradition mortals celebrated by reuniting their families. It brought her some painful memories. It reminded her of her deceased twin brother, Lysimachus. So she would spend Holidays antecipating all the job for the next few days. It felt better this way. It kept her distracted.  
"2053. Can you believe that?"  
She drank her whole glass in one sip. Then, she drank her brother's.  
No one would ever fill that hole in her heart. _No one_. As much as Adrian reminded her brother, he would never replace him.  
She remembered perfectly each word Amethu used to announce Lysimachus had been killed in battle. She remembered how she fell on her knees, sobbing to the point she was unable to breath. Yet, she couldn't remember details of his face, the tone of his voice or even his smile. Her deepest memories of him slowly faded away from her mind, year by year.  
She poured more vodka in her glass. While she was still capable of feeling sadness and emptiness, she couldn't cry. It had been centuries she wasn't able to shed a single tear. Another part of her humanity that had disappeared.  
A loud banging noise pulled her back to reality. Someone was knocking the building's front door repeatedly.  
"Damn it, Adrian," Kamilah complained. "I told you I want to be alone."  
She ignored it, closing her eyes and coming back to her brother's memories.  
More knocking.  
Kamilah rolled her eyes and walked to the elevator, then to the building's front door. She couldn't see anyone through the glass. She opened it.  
"If that's a prank I'm going to..."  
She looked down to see a young girl, shivering with cold.  
"P-please l-let me in..." she begged. "I-I'm f-freezing."  
Kamilah signalized she could come inside.  
"What do you want?" She asked, impatient.  
The girl didn't answer. Her lips had a purple coloration and she was having a hard time to breathe.  
"Oh my god, you're literally freezing," Kamilah noticed. "Come with me, we need to keep you warm."  
She placed her hand gently on the girl's back to conduct her to the elevator. That's when she felt it. The electricity wave, running through all her body. It couldn't be...  
"What's your name, kid?"  
She took off her jacket and handed to the girl to wear.  
"A-Amy."  
With so many buildings in New York City, she chose hers to ask for help. I couldn't be just a coincidence.  
Once they arrived in her office, she placed Amy in front of the fireplace.  
"I'm going to get you a blanket and some coffee."  
Amy nodded.  
In a couple of minutes Kamilah was back.  
"Here," she covered Amy's body with the blanket and offered her a mug. "Are you feeling any better?"  
Amy took a sip of the black strong coffee. Her face suggested she didn't like how it tasted.  
"No hot chocolate?" She asked.  
"Sorry, this is all I have."  
Kamilah crossed her arms and analyzed the girl for a few seconds. That's was definitely Amy. Amy, the _bound_. She could recognize it in her eyes.  
The girl remained in silence, observing every detail of her surroundings.  
"What were you doing? Walking on the streets, in the cold, at this time of the night, huh?"  
"I-I... I was lost."  
Kamilah could tell she felt a little uncomfortable with her question. Amy avoided eye contact and her expression changed. She seemed to be lying.  
"So... _to_ or _from_?" She decided to speculate.  
"What?"  
"Are you running away _to_ something or _from_ something?"  
"Is it that obvious?" Amy scowled.  
After a moment of silence, she finally answered Kamilah's question.  
"Both."  
"Huh?" Kamilah did not understand.  
"I'm running away from my family, from school... from that stupid small town!"  
"The usual," Kamilah commented with some sarcasm.  
"And also _to_ ," Amy continued. "I-I don't know, I just... love this city. I want to live here more than anything else. Something seems to pull me, attract me to New York. I can't explain..."  
"Interesting."  
After she first met Amy, she did an extended research on bounding. There wasn't much she could find, but Amy wasn't supposed to experience any of its effects until she reached adulthood. Once that happened, the bound would only get more and more intense and become love.  
_"Not if I find a way to break it,"_ Kamilah thought when she first read those lines.  
"I was stupid, right?" Amy lamented.  
"Well, you almost froze to death and now you're in a stranger's office... You could've gotten in a lot of trouble, kid."  
Feeling better, Amy finally got up and started walking around.  
"You're not a stranger. You're Kamilah Sayeed."  
Kamilah gasped. How did she know her name? Didn't the debriefing work on her mother? Did she find out who saved her that night?  
"How do you..."  
"It's on your office's door," Amy finished.  
"Oh, right," Kamilah sighed relieved. "I still could kill you, you know?"  
"You won't."  
"And how can you be so sure?"  
"I don't know," Amy smiled. "I just... feel safe here with you."  
Kamilah fell silent.  
Amy kept checking every part of the office, the shelves, the desk, looking through the windows. She finally sat on Kamilah's chair.  
"Were you waiting for someone?"  
"No."  
"Then why there's two glasses here on your desk?"  
"Are you always that curious?"  
Amy laughed.  
"So, kid," Kamilah changed the subject. "Now you're feeling better, let's go. I'll take you to the police station and they'll drive you home."  
The last thing she wanted was to get on the road with Amy. Or meet Amy's mother again.  
"Can we just wait for the fireworks? Please?"  
"Fine. Then you'll go."  
_"What have I gotten myself into?"_ Kamilah thought. She had everything planned. All she had to do was to avoid anything that could lead her to Amy's life again. Now she was bouncing around her office.  
Amy started to look at her. Straight in the eyes. She felt like Amy could see every piece of her soul. Every defense, every wall she spent centuries building, were being slowly destroyed by that child's presence. She felt vulnerable, exposed.  
"Was that your brother?" The girl broke the silence.  
"What?"  
"That you were waiting for."  
Amy was the kind of girl who would not give up on answers. She reminded Kamilah of herself.  
"Uhh... he's not coming. He's dead."  
Amy looked at her, eyes wide in surprise.  
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..."  
"It's okay, Amy. It has been a long time, I'm just having one of those days."  
"Because of Holidays, right?"  
Kamilah nodded and stopped near the window, looking at the sky pensive. She checked her watch, it marked 11:50 pm. Ten more minutes and she'd see herself free from that girl. When she noticed, Amy had approached.  
"Will you watch the fireworks too?" She attempted to start a conversation.  
"No," Kamilah replied, not even looking at her.  
"Come on, it's beautiful."  
"It's only noise, light and smoke."  
Kamilah left Amy alone by the window, sitting on her chair. She stared at her watch until it finally hit Midnight. The fireworks started. Amy's eyes glowed in emotion.  
"Kamilah..."  
"Okay," Kamilah rolled her eyes.  
She joined Amy, watching as the sky exploded in colors for the next few minutes. Amy's excitement and joy somehow made her smile. Made her feel... human. What was the last time she experienced some happiness? She couldn't remember. Her happiness had been buried over 2000 years ago in Egypt. Everything else she felt as a vampire, was just an illusion.  
"Did you make a wish?" Amy asked.  
"What?"  
"Every New Years's Eve at Midnight I make a wish. Don't you?"  
Kamilah shook her head, still smiling.  
"You're an interesting human thing. I like your optimism."  
"Well, you don't always have to be negative about everything, right?"  
She was right, even thought Kamilah would not admit. Maybe the whole bounding thing wasn't so bad after all. That night was the first time she actually felt _something_. Amy somehow made her feel connected to her humanity.  
"Hey Amy," she called, noticing the girl was distracted, looking for something in a backpack she brought with her. "We should go now, your parents must be worried."  
"They probably didn't even notice yet."  
"I doubt it," Kamilah said, sitting close to her on a couch. "Their house must feel too quiet without you."  
Amy laughed.  
"Oh, I found it," she pulled something out from the backpack. "Here. Have a chocolate bar."  
She handed it to Kamilah.  
"That's sweet of you, Amy. But..."  
"It's my favorite," Amy insisted. "You'll never know if it's your favorite too if you don't try it."  
"Okay," Kamilah agreed, unwrapping the chocolate bar and taking a bite.  
She peeked at Amy's backpack. She could see a few clothes, a couple of books and some food.  
"So, this is how you'd survive in New York."  
Amy smiled, allowing her to take a closer look.  
"Potato chips... chocolate... and a book."  
"Hey, it's not any book," Amy complained. "It's the book of the moment."  
She showed Kamilah a copy of _Twilight_.  
"Never heard of it."  
"It's a love story. About a mortal that falls in love with a vampire."  
"Oh. It won't end well, I'm sure."  
"Wrong," Amy told. "Why don't you read a few pages? I'm gonna... rest a little bit."  
She yawned and laid on the couch. Kamilah went to her desk, to give her more space.  
She ran her vampire eyes quickly through some pages of Amy's book, thinking about how Adrian would love that.  
"Sparkle in the sunlight?" Kamilah read to herself. "Insulting!"  
She turned her attention to Amy. The girl had fallen asleep on the couch.  
"Time to take you home, kid."  
Kamilah's phone started to vibrate. She eye rolled, wondering why she didn't turn it off. It was a text:  
_Council meeting. Tomorrow._  
A woman was "accidentally" turned during a Christmas Celebration and they expected her to clean up the mess. As always. Then, things would get tense between her and the other members. There was always the risk of a war.  
She looked at Amy again. If The Council found out about the bound, she'd become Kamilah's weakness. If someday they planned to destroy her, they'd know exactly where to start.  
_"I don't want to feel this,"_ Kamilah thought. _"Not again."_  
She carried Amy to her car and placed her comfortably on the back seat. She drove to the next Police Station. Before leaving the car, she pressed her fingers against Amy's temples.  
"I'm sorry, this is the best. For both of us."  
She hesitated for a moment, then she proceeded.  
"Forget about tonight, Amy. You never met Kamilah Sayeed. You had a fun day in New York... you saw the fireworks. After that, you fell asleep on a bench, a guard found you and brought you to the station. And... be happy."  
She carried Amy in her arms to inside the station.  
"Hello, this girl ran away from home and stopped by my office, asking for help," Kamilah told a police officer. "Her name is Amy."  
She placed Amy on a bench, inside the waiting room.  
"Okay, I'll need more details. Where exactly did you find her?" The guard asked, taking notes. "Miss?"  
She looked up from her desk, Kamilah had vanished into the night.  
And Kamilah never heard of Amy after that. Not until...

 **8 years later... Ahmanet Financial - 2 p.m.**  
"Ms. Sayeed?" The secretary called.  
Kamilah took her eyes off the computer screen to pay attention.  
"Would you like to meet your new assistant?"  
"The one Mannon Financial recommended?"  
"Yes."  
"Sure, tell her I'm ready to meet her."


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \- English is my second language, please forgive me for any mistakes.  
> \- I planned to write only three chapters for this fic, but since Chapter 3 got a little too long I decide to split it in two parts. Now we’ll have Chapter 4 :)  
> \- I got a little adventurous with this one, creating an OC and adding some french words. I don’t speak any French, so forgive me if it isn’t correct :P
> 
> Disclaimer: Bloodbound and all the characters belong to Pixelberry Studios

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
**Flashback: Paris - France, 2013**  
_Kamilah took a long sip of her coffee while looking through the café's window. She appreciated the solitude of that moment. She could finally relax after a complicated business meeting._  
_"Kami?!" A high-pitched female voice shouted. "Mon Dieu! Is that really you?!"_  
_A pair of arms hugged her from behind, so tightly it almost crushed her chest._  
_"Louise," she calmly replied, without turning around._  
_It wasn't necessary. She'd be able to recognize that voice, that upbeat personality, anywhere in the world._  
_Louise was her favorite protege. They met in France in the middle of 14th century. She was only 18 years old when a vampire invaded her bedroom, in the middle of the night, and turned her. Her noble family disowned her to avoid such a scandal. Kamilah found her wandering around the streets of Paris, lonely and lost. The two of them became good friends until her move to America._  
_"What brings you here this time?"_  
_Louise pulled a chair, sitting next to Kamilah._  
_"Business."_  
_"As usual," Louise sighed in disappointment. "You only care about that company of yours now."_  
_"Well, it's all I have," Kamilah lamented._  
_"Oh please... I assume you heard the news?"_  
_"Uhh... no?"_  
_Louise called a waitress and ordered a coffee and a croissant, giving Kamilah some time to think._  
_"Every vampire I know has embraced the modern world and joined Facebook. Except for you, Kami."_  
_"I don't join social networks."_  
_"Nevermind," Louise shook her head. "Now the big news... I'M GETTING MARRIED."_  
_"Oh..." Kamilah looked surprised. "You?! A lot can change in a few centuries, huh?"_  
_Louise laughed._  
_"I know, I didn't think it was possible to settle down with ONE man until..." she paused. "I met my bound."_  
_The last word nearly made Kamilah spit her coffee._  
_"Excuse me?!"_  
_"Yeah, Kami... Bounding? Have you ever heard the legend?"_  
_Kamilah fell silent. Maybe it was time to share it with someone and Louise was the right person. She was completely, maybe excessively, loyal to her._  
_"I kinda... uh... I've met my bound too."_  
_Her cheeks burned a little bit. She took another sip of her coffee, to wash her mouth after saying those words._  
_"Ferme ta bouche, Kamilah!" Louise yelled, punching the table in excitement. Everyone in the café started to look at them. "Tell me more about it!"_  
_"It's not such a big deal..." Kamilah told, in an almost inaudible tone._  
_"Are you getting married too?!" Louise interrupted._  
_"God, no. She was like twelve the last time we met."_  
_"Oh. And how old is she now?"_  
_"17? 18 maybe? I don't know. I debriefed her so she would never find me again."_  
_"For God's sake, Kamilah," Louise rolled her eyes. "Why?"_  
_Kamilah looked through the window for a few seconds, looking for an appropriate answer. Why did she debrief Amy in first place? Was it about Amy's safety? Or she was afraid? That question had been bothering her for the last few years._  
_"She was just a child! She still is. How can I provide her the safety she needs? How can I make sure another vampire won't kill her to destroy me? And there's..."_  
_Louise gently placed her hand on top of Kamilah's._  
_"Why don't you let her choose?"_  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
**2 years ago (2016) - Ahmanet Financial, 2 p.m.**

"Ms. Sayeed?" The secretary called.  
Kamilah took her eyes off the computer screen to pay attention.  
"Would you like to meet your new assistant?"  
"The one Mannon Financial recommended?"  
"Yes."  
"Sure, tell her I'm ready to meet her," Kamilah turned her attention back to her computer.  
A couple of weeks ago, she met the CEO of Mannon Financial in an event and the man insisted she should consider giving a job to one of his interns. It wasn't any job, she needed a new personal assistant. The girl would need really good qualifications to please her, but according to Mannon, she wouldn't find a better candidate.  
The office's door opened and Kamilah heard the new employee's footsteps.  
"Ms. Sayeed?" The girl announced.  
Kamilah stopped typing and looked at her. Those eyes, she recognized them instantly. Amy. She was a woman now and she was gorgeous. Kamilah opened her mouth to say something but no words came out. The two stayed in silence, lost in each other eyes for almost a minute.  
"A-are you busy?" Amy asked nervously. "Because... uhh... if you are, I-I..."  
"That's okay," Kamilah replied, trying to recompose herself. "I can finish this later."  
"I'm Amy," she extended her hand to Kamilah.  
Kamilah hesitated for a second but she needed a confirmation. She shook Amy's hand and the sensation was more poweful than ever. Electric impulses ran through every part of her body. Amy's eyes suggested she felt stronger, as it was the first time for her.  
"I know, darling," Kamilah finally released her hand. "I was waiting for you."  
"Oh. Y-you were? Right, Mannon told me he would..."  
"Recommend you?" Kamilah finished, noticing Amy was too anxious to proceed.  
Amy nodded in agreement.  
"So... Is there anything I can do for you?" She asked trying to sound professional.  
"Let's start with a test, Amy," Kamilah handed her some papers. "If you prove me you can complete these minor tasks, then you're the girl I'm looking for."  
"S-sure. I won't disappoint you."  
Amy hands were shaking but she still managed to show some confidence.  
Once she left, Kamilah drummed her fingers apprehensively on her desk. There was still a chance Amy wouldn't be able to complete the tasks, she had no experience. And then, she could fire her. Easy as that.  
She started typing again, trying to pretend it was just another day at work.  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Two hours passed and still no signs of Amy.  
"Maybe she just gave up," Kamilah thought.  
A couple of minutes later, Amy knocked the door.  
Kamilah rolled her eyes.  
"Ms. Sayeed?" The girl had a tense look on her face.  
"Yes, darling?"  
Amy approached Kamilah's desk.  
"Your schedule was a mess. I mean, you can't be at two places at the same time! I rescheduled some meetings, made some modifications and... Oh! I downloaded this app to make it easier, any modifications I make in your schedule will be sent directly to your phone."  
"Proceed," Kamilah finally began to pay attention.  
"And here are the documents you asked me to type. I found some inaccuracies and... I made the decision of modifying them myself."  
"Bold decision, huh?" Kamilah examined the papers. "But risky, for someone who has just been hired."  
"I-I'm sorry... I..."  
"Differently from many, I like those qualities."  
"Uhh... you do?"  
"Congratulations, Amy," Kamilah announced. "Welcome to Ahmanet Financial."  
"Oh my god!" Amy grinned ear to ear. "T-Thank you, Ms. Sayeed."  
"Only Kamilah, please."  
Kamilah felt defeated. She hated when things slipped out from her control. She needed another plan.  
" _Stay calm,_ " she repeated mentally to herself. " _You'll find a way to get rid of her. Or... no! This is not even a possibility!_ "  
Their eyes crossed again. The tension between them was undeniable. Amy bit her lower lip and looked down at the floor.  
"D-do you need anything else from me?"  
"Actually," Kamilah replied, standing up. "I'm taking you with me for a meeting. Are you ready?"  
"More than ready," Amy smiled.  
Whien Kamilah passed by her, she couldn't help listening Amy whispering to herself.  
"Wow, it's only my first day and it’s so exciting!"  
The corners of her mouth curled up a bit into a smile.  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
After the meeting Kamilah sat inside her car, resting her head against the seat. She rolled her eyes and punched the steering wheel in frustration. Amy's presence was enough to distract her completely, to the point she almost lost the deal. She couldn't find any excuses to fire the girl. Despite her young age and lack of experience, she acted like a good professional.  
"You did so great, Kamilah," Amy exclaimed, entering the car. "Congratulations."  
"No," Kamilah replied. "I didn't."  
"Come on..."  
"My mind is somewhere else today, Amy. Believe me, we could've lost that deal."  
"I'm sorry, you can tell me what's going on."  
Kamilah gave her an intrigued look.  
"I-I mean... If you want to. I'm your assistant but you can tell me anything. I-I'm a good listener."  
Kamilah smiled.  
"You're a good girl, Amy."  
As the tension began to hang in the air again, Kamilah started to drive.  
"I'll drive you home," she told. "Where do you live?"  
"Actually, could you drop me at some restaurant?" Amy asked. "I'm starving."  
Kamilah agreed.  
Trying to focus on traffic, words she heard three years ago echoed inside her mind.  
_"Kamilah," Louise encouraged before she entered the plane back to New York, "do yourself a favor and be happy, at least for once."_  
"Well... I'm kinda hungry too," Kamilah announced. "I think I'll join you for dinner."  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Since they arrived at the restaurant, the only words that came out from both of their mouths were their orders. 20 minutes, Kamilah counted. 20 minutes of an awkward silence.  
"Huh... Kamilah?" Amy finally opened her mouth.  
"Yes?"  
"I appreciate you brought me to this place but... It's one of the fanciest restaurants in New York and I barely have place to live."  
"Don't worry about it," Kamilah assured her. "Consider it a celebration for your new job."  
Amy smiled. For the first time she didn't look nervous, what made Kamilah feel more comfortable to start a conversation.  
"I just realized, you're my new assistant and I know nothing about you."  
"There isn't much to know..." Amy took a sip of her drink. "I come from a small town and I'm still trying to figure out what comes next."  
"Interesting," Kamilah looked at her in the eyes. "And what do you expect to come next?"  
"Well, now I've got a job..." Amy paused and grinned. "I need a place to live. I've been crashing at some friends' apartment and the neighborhood is kinda... creepy."  
"I suppose we can solve that too. I have this apartment that has been empty for ages... What do you think, Amy?"  
"I-I'm sorry but... just like that?"  
"Consider it a welcome gift. It's a good place for a start. It has enough space for you to invite your friends for a drink... or your boyfriend, maybe."  
"I don't have a boyfriend," Amy quickly answered.  
"Really?"  
"I had. We broke up... a few months ago."  
Upon Kamilah's silence, Amy continued.  
"He wanted to get married, start a family... I wasn't ready for that. I'm looking for... something else."  
Kamilah smirked.  
"Hmmm... And what is that?"  
"Someone who's different from everyone I've ever met... Someone that..."  
"Challenges you?" Kamilah added.  
"Exactly!" Amy agreed. "Someone who will bring some action, adventure to my life."  
"A little bit of danger too?" Kamilah joked.  
"Well..." Amy lowered her voice. "I wouldn't mind that, to be honest."  
"Good."  
Amy tried to reach for her drink, still focused on Kamilah's deep brown eyes. It was like she had been hypnotized by them. She barely noticed when her fingers accidentally touched Kamilah's hand, that quickly pulled away. She wanted to apologize but that sensation made her unable to speak. What was that eletricity she felt everytime she touched Kamilah's hand? At the same time it frightened her, it made her feel pleasure.  
"Now it's your turn," she attempted to break the tension.  
"Excuse me?" Kamilah asked.  
"Is there anything you’re looking for, Kamilah? I mean, you must have everything you want."  
"Almost everything."  
"What's missing?"  
"Well, Amy..." Kamilah smiled, playfully. "I'm the one asking questions here, darling."  
"Come on! It's isn't fair!"  
"Maybe we should call it a night. It's getting late."  
Minutes later they were inside the car, driving to Amy's place. Kamilah started to remember Louise's words all over again.  
_"Your bound is going to make you feel things you've never felt before. She’s going to change you. You'll feel more alive than ever."_  
With her advanced senses, she could hear Amy heartbeats. Her heart rate somehow showed how much Amy desired her too. She could see it everywhere in Amy’s body, in her eyes, in her mouth... A feeling Kamilah had never experienced before started to burn inside her.  
" _You were right, Louise,_ " she thought. " _Absolutely right._ "  
She opened her mouth to say something but when she looked at Amy, sitting right next to her, all she could do was smile. Amy smiled back.  
"So, this is where I live," Amy pointed to an old and shabby building.  
Kamilah stopped and looked around. It was one of the most dangerous places to live in New York City.  
"You weren't joking when you said you lived in a creepy neighborhood, huh? Tomorrow I'll ask someone to get your stuff and take to your new apartment."  
"I... I can't thank you enough for that."  
Amy opened the car's door.  
"Amy, wait," Kamilah ordered. "I'm going with you."

 

** To be continued... **


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \- English is my second language, please forgive me for any mistakes.  
> \- Thank you for reading and for your lovely reviews. I hope you enjoy the final part of this story :)

“I’m your boss, it’s my duty to ensure your safety.”  
“Sure,” Amy looked at Kamilah with a doubtful expression.  
After flights of noisy and crumbling stairs, they finally reached their destination. Amy placed her hand on the door’s knob, then looked at Kamilah. She didn’t want to say goodbye yet. Kamilah’s eyes were like gates to an unknown mysterious world and Amy was willing to explore it. For the first time in that night Kamilah looked so open, that was the perfect chance to get to know her better.  
“You know what? There’s something I wanna show you,” she placed her hand on Kamilah’s elbow. “Follow me.”  
She led Kamilah thought another door and another staircase, heading to the building’s rooftop.   
“What do you think?”  
“Are you planning to murder me or something?”  
Amy grinned.  
“Since I arrived in New York I always come here to relax,” she explained. “It’s one of rare places where you can see the stars.”  
“Well, I’ll show you my rooftop someday.”  
Amy laid on the floor and invited Kamilah to do the same, what she did after a second of hesitation. Closing her eyes, she listened to Amy’s heartbeats again. She was now calm and confident. It felt relaxing. Her mind traveled far, far away in her memories… recapitulating everything she ever learned about bounding… until…  
 _“The sex with your bound is something else!” Louise told.“Trust me, she’ll keep you busy for hours.”_  
Kamilah quickly opened her eyes.  
“What are you thinking about?” Amy asked.  
“Nothing,” Kamilah felt her cheeks burning a little bit.  
Silence settled over the two of them again, until Amy decided to speak.  
“I always wanted to learn all these constellations names and how to spot them.”  
“Easy,” Kamilah started to point to the sky. “Orion… Andromeda… Cassiopeia…”  
“Show off! Any other hidden talents I should know about?”  
“Well, once I was obsessed with botany. I learned how to identify any plant, from any part of the world.”  
“So if I take you to a garden this weekend, you’ll be able to name anything I ask you?”  
“Absolutely.”  
“I don’t believe you.”  
“You’ll see.”  
“It’s a challenge.”  
“Okay.”  
Kamilah wondered if Amy was actually asking her out or if she was joking. And accidentally, she accepted. Before she had any time to take it back, Amy proceeded with the conversation.  
“Tell me more about it.”  
“What?”  
“Your obsession with botany. Why you decided to learn about it, your favorite plants…”  
Kamilah spent the next few minutes talking about rare flowers, ecological cycles and places she had yet to visit.  
“But like I said, I lost interest,” she finished.  
She looked at Amy, who was smiling broadly.  
“What?”   
“Nothing… you’re quite of a nerd.”  
Kamilah furrowed her brows at her.  
“In a good way, I mean,” Amy added. “It’s cute.”  
“Oh,” Kamilah felt she was blushing again.  
Feeling bad for making her uncomfortable, Amy changed the subject.  
“Look, I spotted a constellation!” She announced.  
“Which one?”  
“There,” Amy pointed. “That one. That group of stars… it looks like a… slice of pizza?”  
“Come on,” Kamilah rolled her eyes. “Do you need to make fun of everything?”  
“Hey, I’m not joking! Look closer and tell me you can’t see it.”  
“Okay, Amy. Tomorrow we’ll report your findings to the Astronomical Society.”  
Amy laughed and elbowed her playfully.   
“Dork,” Kamilah smiled.  
Kamilah couldn’t remember when was the last time someone made her smile that way. With Amy she felt complete. She felt… human.  
“It’s funny,” Amy said.  
“What?”  
“I feel like I’ve known you for ages. It’s like we have some kind of connection.”  
Kamilah didn’t answer. After a minute, she looked at her watch.  
“It’s getting late, we should go.”  
Amy agreed.  
They both headed to the rooftop’s door. Amy tried to open it, without success.  
“It’s stuck!” She complained.  
“Let me check it.”  
Kamilah placed herself behind Amy, suddently realizing how close they were. She could smell the scent of Amy’s hair, she could feel her body against hers. Amy turned around, staring directly into her eyes.   
“Can I ask you one question?”  
“Well, you’re not the kind that just give up, are you?”  
“What are you looking for, Kamilah?”  
“I…”  
It was like Amy could read her mind, her soul… Kamilah was being pulled into Amy’s direction by an invisible force she couldn’t fight against. She placed her hand on Amy’s neck, tracing every inch of her skin with her fingers. Her jawline, her perfect lips… That was exactly what she had been looking for.  
Amy closed her eyes and leaned her head forward, inviting Kamilah to close the distance and kiss her. Their lips were about to meet when…  
 _*CRASH!*  
_ A loud, shattering glass noise made Amy open her eyes and take a step behind.  
“Oh my god…” she said, with some embarrassment. “I hate this place. So much.”  
“You need to move out,” Kamilah forced the door opened. “As soon as possible.”  
A couple of minutes later, they were back at Amy’s door.  
“Thank you for the night, Kamilah. I really enjoyed it.”  
“See you tomorrow, Amy.”  
Kamilah was ready to turn and leave when Amy opened the door. The scene she saw inside the apartment made her whole body shiver.  
There was blood. Blood everywhere. Two bodies had been mauled, making them unrecognizable. Inside the apartment she could hear it… a sound she could easily distinguish.   
“HSsssssHSsssHSssss”  
A feral.  
She looked at Amy. She was paralyzed, her skin was pale and her pupils dilated. Tears streamed down her face. She opened her mouth to scream but Kamilah stopped her.  
“Amy, listen to me,” Kamilah whispered. “I need you to be quiet, okay? If you scream it’ll attract people and it’ll only make things worse.”  
She grabbed Amy’s hand and entered the apartment, shutting the door.  
“Stay behind me, Amy.”  
Kamilah’s hearing was able to locate the Feral. It was inside the bedroom and now it was moving… looking for its next prey. She needed to act fast.  
She reached for a chair and smashed it against the floor, then she grabbed one of the legs to use it as stake. The noise quickly attract the feral to their location.  
“HSsssssHSsssHSssss”  
“W-what…” Amy fell down on the floor, crying and covering her eyes with her hands. “K-Kamilah… please…”  
Kamilah started to move closer to the Feral, trying to get its attention. The creature was too focused on Amy. She bit her own wrist, opening a large gash. She expected her blood would attract the Feral to her direction. But it didn’t.  
“Kamilah!” Amy yelled as the creature lunged in her direction.  
Kamilah placed herself in front of Amy, shielding her body.   
When Amy opened her eyes, all she had time to see was the Feral with a stake through his heart, slowing turning into ashes.  
“Let’s get out of here,” Kamilah grabbed Amy by the arm.  
———————————————————————————————————–  
Kamilah took Amy back to the building’s rooftop while she tried to figure out what to do next. If someone was in trouble, that was Amy. Her roomates were brutally murdered. Her fingerprints were all over the apartment. No one would believe a pile of ashes did that.  
By her side, Amy sobbed copiously. Kamilah wrapped her arms around the girl, who rested the head against her chest.  
“M-my friends,” she told. “They had been together since freshman year. T-They were planning to get married. It just… it’s isn’t fair!”  
“I know…” Kamilah knew, by her own experience, that anything she said would be useless right now.  
“W-why don’t you call the police, Kamilah… We… We can’t leave them…”  
“Amy, it’s not a case for the police. What attacked your friends, darling… it was a supernatural creature.”  
“What?”  
“It’s complicated.”  
“H-how do you know about them?” Amy questioned, between sobs. “You… you knew exactly what to do… how to kill it…”  
Kamilah remained silent, running her fingers through Amy’s hair. Maybe she should call Adrian. They could find a way to deal with the emergency together.  
“Oh my god!” Amy shouted. “I’m going to jail, right? They won’t believe a monster did that. They’ll think I…”  
“Don’t worry about it, darling. I’ll take care of everything.”  
“H-how?”   
Kamilah closed her eyes, savoring that moment as much as she could. She held Amy’s hand, feeling her soft skin and enjoying every second of that eletric sensation.   
“Do you trust me?” She sighed.  
———————————————————————————————————–  
“What are we doing here?” Amy asked.   
Looking around she noticed they were at the bus station.  
“The right thing,” Kamilah answered after a pause.  
“Wha…”  
She pulled Amy closer to her chest again, whipping the tears from her cheeks with her thumb.  
“Our night… It was nice while it lasted, wasn’t it?”  
“Yes,” Amy agreed, forcing a smile. “When it’s over, my challenge is still up.”  
“Of course it is.”  
Amy wrapped her arms around Kamilah’s body, holding her tight.  
Kamilah smiled, caressing her cheeks one last time.  
“Close your eyes,” she whispered in Amy’s ear.  
“What are you going to do?”  
Kamilah moved her fingers up to Amy’s temples.  
“Amy? Right now you need to forget about your friends, okay? Forget that you’ve ever met them. The last few days in New York, you were staying in a hotel. Nothing happened inside that apartment.”  
“I feel dizzy… and confused…” Amy complained.  
Kamilah took a long breath before proceeding. She could stop right now but debriefing had chances of not being successful if one significative memory, linked to the event, remained. Amy needed to forget everything about that day.  
“And…” Kamilah paused. “You never made to your interview at Ahmanet Financial. Your taxi got stuck in traffic, it was too late when you arrived.”  
“Kamilah… Stop…”  
Amy resisted. Her mind was creating routes to keep Kamilah in her memories.  
“Forget about me, Amy! You never met Kamilah Sayeed. Never.”  
Amy went completely silent. Only listening to her commands.  
“Now, go back to your hometown. You said you wanted adventure so… I have some contacts, in a few weeks they’ll offer you a volunteer job in San Trobida, stay there for a year and then…”  
 _“Why don’t you let her choose?” Louise’s words kept showing up all over again, inside her mind._  
“Then… I’m setting you free to decide if you want to return, if you want us to meet again…”  
Amy nodded, consenting with the debriefing.  
Still in a hypnotized-state, she left Kamilah’s car and walked into the bus station.  
“Goodbye, Amy,” Kamilah muttered, before driving away.  
———————————————————————————————————–  
“So you finally met Mrs. Right?” Adrian teased, while painting a wall.  
“I knew I shouldn’t have told you,” Kamilah stopped scrubbing the floor and rolled her eyes at him.  
“Did you feel all the sensations the book describred?”  
“It doesn’t matter.”  
She removed the rubber gloves and inspected every corner of the apartment, making sure there was no traces of Amy’s presence.  
“Done, now we place a letter right here and everyone will be convinced the young couple is traveling the world.”  
“Kamilah, why don’t you go…”  
“It’s over, Adrian.”  
The apartment looked good as new. No one would ever know about the Feral’s attack. Except for Kamilah, Adrian and the rest of the Council.  
“Fine. But if she ever comes back,” he smiled, “make sure you’ll introduce me to your soulmate.”  
“Shut up!” Kamilah punched him slightly on the shoulder.  
———————————————————————————————————–  
 **Present Days - Raines Corporation  
** Amy extended her hand for Kamilah to shake, what she quickly dismissed. Physical contact would make Amy feel the bounding sensations, ringing a bell in her deepest memories. Memories that were lost inside her.  
Kamilah had been preparing herself for that day. For the following minutes she successfully ignored Amy’s presence, but then she spoke…  
“The scarab is a symbol of rebirth, if I’m recalling my college class correctly?”  
Unable to fight against her feelings, Kamilah finally looked in the girl’s eyes, as if she was noticing her for the first time.  
“What…” Amy thought, wondering where she had seen those deep brown eyes before.


End file.
